Vapor-heating device for internal-combustion engines.



A. T.ROBER1S a. E. K. BARNES. VAPOR HEATING DEVICE FUR INIERNAI. COMBUSTION ENGINES.

APPLICATION lFILE? APR. 30.'l9I.

i Athe city of Long Beach and town of Verdugo, California,

rra ar ALFRED T. ROBERTS, OF LONG BEACH, AND EVERITTE K. BARNES, OF CASA VERDUGO, CALIFORNIA.

VAPOR-HEATNG DEVICE FOR INTERNAL-COMEUSTION ENGINES.

ratentea nee. it', isis.

Application led April 30, 1917. Serial No. 165,582.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that we, ALFRED T. ROBERTS and EVERITTE K. BARNES, both citizens of the United States, residing, respectively@ in asa and useful Vapor-Heating Device for Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates 'the exhaust from the engine cylinders of an internal combustion engine is utilized to heat the charge from the carbureter on its way to said cylinders. Said charge is conveyed to the engine cylinders by a conduit and a heater is provided for said conduit, said heater being placed in communication with the exhaust pipe from the engine.

With this end in View a further object of this invention is to provide an improved means for regulating the flow of the heated exhaust from the manifold around the tube conducting the mixture from the carbureter, thereby utilizing to the fullest extent the heat furnished by the exhaust. This latter feature is secured by providing means for regulating both the volume of the exhaust gases led to'and the volume of saidy gases released from the heating jacket.

TWith the foregoingand possibly other objects in view this invention comprises the various combinations, sub-combinations and details of construction set forth both in the specification, illustrated in the drawings and then more particularly pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention Figure 1 is a top plan view of the device the intake'pipe being sectioned. A

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the device on line 2-2 of Fig. 3. j

line 3-3 of Fig. 3 is a cross sectionon Fig. 1.

In the drawings, fragments only of the carbureter and enginey cylinders are shown, these of themselves, forming no part of the invention.

Referring in detail to the drawings, from the carbureter 1 the intake pipe 2 leads to the interior of heating jacket 3, said intake pipe, within said jacket 3, having two branches 4 to deliver the charge to the. engine cylinders 5. Within the branches 4 have invented a new to a device wherein pipes 4 t0 heating jacket 3 -eventhattlre exhaust may by lmeans of washers of the intake pipe we provide a plurality of longitudinally extending, inwardly projecting, heat radiating ribs 6, four of such ribs being shown in the drawings, but a greater or lesser number may be furnished if desired.

Theribs 6 of the branch pipes 4 do not extend across the space 4a within the branch pipes opposite which the intake pipe 2 enters. This construction permits the mixture from the carbureter to enter the branch pipes 4 in an unobstructed manner. upon entering said branch pipes, however, the mixture Ais drawn into contact with the inwardly extending heat radiating surfaces provided by therib 6,-.eight ribs being shown in the illustrated embodiment of the invention. The heating jacket completely sur-4 rounds .bran'ch pipes 4 so that thev heat is directly conveyed through the walls of said the heat radiating ribs 6. Said is also--provided with an extension 7 which partially incloses the receiving portion of the intake pipe. As illustrated in the drawings, the heated exhaust enters the receiving. port 8 provided in the wall of extension 7, it being understood howbe connected with any suitableportion of theyheating ljacket 3. The position of receiving port 8 with respect to the intake pipe :2 and the shape of said pipe 2 is such that the relatively cold mixture from the carbureter is thrown into intimate contact with the concave side of the inner surface of the wall of the intake pipe, while the exhaust gas at its highest temperature is directed squarely against. the

opposite side of said intake pipe 2, thus greatly-increasing the temperature of the mixture from `the carbure'ter and preparing it for completesuper-heating bythe ribs 6 when it reach/,es...theseV 'Heat-radiating elements.

Atdeach end of the heating jacket 3 we provide an exhaust, port 11 over which we fplace a baiiie plate 12v secured by screws 13 the end of the jacket 3 14. This construction governs the speed at which the exhaust gases are released from the heating jacket 3.

A valve/ 9 is provided to regulate the amount of `exhaust delivered through port 8,

and held away from vsaid valve preferably having a squared operating stern9a which' may be turned by a suitable tool. A flexible tube 10, a fragment of which is shown in Fig. l, is preferably provided as a means for conducting the heated exhaust from the manifold (not.

shown) to the'heating jacket 3. The heating jacket 3 and conduits passing therethrough may be formed as a single casting. In the sample shown in the drawings a anged member 15 is shown for bolting on to the carbureter.

In operation, the ribs 6 form a partial obstruction to the incoming charge and thus, by mechanical kas well as thermal action, aid in breaking up the particles of liquid fuel in the charge. So far as we are aware it is new in the art to which this invention pei'- tainsto provide, for the fuel mixture, a conduit having on its interior surfaces c0111-,

' binedheat-radiating and fuel mixing means. It will be seen that the heating and mixing elements of this invention are incorporated into, andfoim a part of, the construction of theintake manifold, said intake manifold being'provided with a hollow inlet extension, there being an inlet port to introduce a hot blast laterally into one side of said extension; and a fuel inlet pipe entering the opposite-side of said extension, said inlet pipe being convex opposite to the mouth of said inlet port, so that the hot blast entering from said inlet port, is directed squarely against the convex surface of said inlet pipe. By this construction the greatest heat is centered upon the portion of the fuel inlet pipe which would otherwise be the most b rapidly cooled by the incoming stream. of

fuel, with the result that the fuel is very quickly heated.

Ve claim:

l. A combined intake manifold and fuel heating device for internal combustion engines comprising a heating chan'iber'having a hollow inlet extension projecting therefrom, there being an inlet port to introduce a hot blast laterally into one side of said extension, and a fuel inlet pipe entering the opposite side of said extension, said inlet pipe being convex'opposite to said port.

2. A combined intake manifold and fuel heating device for internal combustion engines comprising a heating chamber having a hollow inlet extension projecting therefrom, there-being an inlet port to introduce a hot blast into one side of said extension, and a fuel inlet pipe entering the opposite side of said extension, said inlet pipe being convex opposite to the mouth of said inlet port so that the blast fromsaid port is diiected against the convex side of said pipe.

3. The combination with a heating jacket, of an intake pipe heated by said jacket, the main trunk of said intake pipe dividing into oppositely extending delivery branches forining-a T-shape conduit, the branches of the T being in substantial alinement with each other, and a set of ribs in each of said branches, the inner ends of said ribs being directed toward an open space at the center of the T.

ALFRED T. ROBERTS. EVERITTE K. BARNES. 

